Degradation of antibiotics, organic matters and ammonia during secondary wastewater treatment using boron-doped diamond electro-oxidation combined with ceramic ultrafiltration

In this study, a BDD electrolytic oxidation-ceramic membrane ultrafiltration (EO-CM) system for the removals of antibiotics, organic matters and ammonia in wastewater was evaluated. Sulfamethazine (SMZ) was degraded following a pseudo first-order kinetics. The removal rate of SMZ improved with the increase of electro-oxidation time (0-60 min) and current density (5-30 mA/cm(2)). During the BDD electro-oxidation process, H2O2 and hydroxyl radicals (center dot OH) were generated which were detected by N, N-diethyl-p-phenylenediamine (DPD) method and electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy (EPR), respectively. Chemical oxygen demand (COD) was able to be removed by EO and CM processes, in which proteins and humic acids were regarded as the main removed components measured using excitation-emission matrix (EEM) technique. Moreover, BDD electrooxidation pretreatment could make the CM process maintain a high water flux and significantly control the membrane fouling and relieve transmembrane pollution. In addition, the removal of ammonia was enhanced with the increase of chloride ions (Cl-) in wastewater during EO process due to the generation of active chlorine (i.e., ClO-, HClO, or Cl-2) from the oxidation of Cl-. Chloramine and nitrogen were produced in the oxidation of ammonia by active chlorine. Overall, the results of this study suggest that BDD EO-CM system is a promising process for removing antibiotics, organic matters and ammonia.

Automated summary

The study evaluated a BDD electrolytic oxidation-ceramic membrane ultrafiltration system for the removal of antibiotics, organic matters, and ammonia in wastewater. The system showed promising results in removing these contaminants, improving removal rates with increased electro-oxidation time and current density. Additionally, the presence of chloride ions in wastewater enhanced the removal of ammonia during the electro-oxidation process.